Tag: Bill MacRae

August 30, 2018

Seona Dancing – Bitter Heart (Japan 7″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1983

“Bitter Heart” was the second and final single released by British new wave duo Seona Dancing. The song was produced by British songwriter, producer, engineer and mixer,Phil Thornalley he is perhaps best known for co-writing (with Scott Cutler and Anne Preven) the song “Torn” (made famous by Natalie Imbruglia’s cover version, which he also produced) and the number one hits “Mama Do”, “Boys and Girls” and “Cry Me Out” for Pixie Lott. He also produced The Cure’s 1982 album Pornography and was later their bass player for eighteen months, producing and performing the distinctive double bass line on their 1983 single The Love Cats. He was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical in 1984 for Into the Gap by the Thompson Twins.

“Bitter Heart” reached #79 on the UK singles chart after spending three weeks on the chart.

A video was made in 1983. It has had considerable play in recent years on talk shows interviewing Ricky Gervais and has been played on “’80s flashback” shows. The video is most known for Gervais looking almost exactly like David Bowie. The plot of the video is a girl in a wedding dress who was about to get married and has just had her husband leave her, after which she becomes angry and destroys most of the objects in the room.

This Japan 7″ is housed in a unique picture sleeve and includes the 7″ mixes of both tracks.

SIDE A:
Bitter Heart (7″ Version) 3:57

SIDE B:
Tell Her (7″ Version) 2:52

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: London Records ?– S07P 1046
Format: Vinyl, 7″, 45 RPM
Country: Japan
Released: 1983
Genre: Electronic
Style: New Wave, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Photography By – Sheila Rock
Producer – Phil Thornalley
Written-By – MacRae*, Gervais*

Find the 7″ on DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Isolation: Auralex Acoustics ISO-Tone Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube: Mullard 12AX7 Preamp Vacuum Tube Pins
Soundcard: Novation Audiohub 2×4 Audio Interface
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: iZotope RX Advanced 2, ocenaudio
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

August 29, 2018

Seona Dancing – Bitter Heart (UK 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1983

-DjPaulT Recommended 12″

“Bitter Heart” is a single by British new wave group Seona Dancing, released in 1983. It is a David Bowie-style new wave pop song, sung by a then-unknown Ricky Gervais with synthesizers provided by Bill Macrae. The song was virtually unknown in their homeland of the UK, after only peaking at #79 on the UK Singles Chart, even though it remained in the Top 100 for 3 weeks.

SIDE A:
Bitter Heart (Extended Mix) 6:36

SIDE B:
Tell Her (Extended Mix) 6:01

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: London Records ‎– LONX 32, London Records ‎– 810 284-1
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1983
Genre: Electronic
Style: New Wave, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Photography By – Sheila Rock
Producer – Phil Thornalley
Written-By – MacRae*, Gervais*

Find the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

August 28, 2018

Seona Dancing – More To Lose (Japan 7″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1983

“More To Lose” was the debut single by British new wave group Seona Dancing, best known for providing comedian Ricky Gervais with his first experiences as a public performer. In June 1982, in his final year as a student at University College London, Ricky Gervais and his friend Bill Macrae formed Seona Dancing, with Macrae writing the songs and playing keyboards and Gervais writing and singing the lyrics. After recording a sixteen-song demo tape, they were signed by London Records. In June 1983, the duo performed “More to Lose” on the ITV syndicated children’s television show Razzmatazz. Yet, despite the promotion of the song “More To Lode” failed to break the top 40 only peaking at #117 on the UK singles chart.

The song, which utilizes an opening piano riff to convey the sound of falling teardrops, became a major radio and club hit as well as a favorite at high-school dances during the 1980s and beyond. Allmusic critic Michael Sutton wrote that the track was “the theme song of angst-ridden New Wave youths in the Philippines” and “an ’80s anthem as ubiquitous as Peter Gabriel’s ‘In Your Eyes’, but with the eternal hipster cool of Joy Division’s ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’.”

This Japan 7″ pressing features the 7″ version housed in a unique picture sleeve. This edition also comes with a glossy 5″x6″ black and white promo photo.

SIDE A:
More To Lose (7″ Version) 3:48

SIDE B:
You’re On My Side 3:06

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: London Records ‎– S07P1042
Format: Vinyl, 7″, 45 RPM
Country: Japan
Released: Oct 1983
Genre: Electronic
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Producer – Mike Thorne
Written-By – MacRae*, Gervais*

Find the 7″ at DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

August 27, 2018

Seona Dancing – More To Lose (UK 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1983

-DjPaulT Recommended 12″

“More To Lose” is a single by British new wave group Seona Dancing, released in 1983. It is an uptempo new wave pop song, sung by a then-unknown Ricky Gervais, who was the lyricist and vocalist of the band. Macrae was the band’s composer and keyboard player. The song remains virtually unknown in their homeland of the UK, after only peaking at No. 117 on the UK Singles Chart, but found tremendous success in the Philippines in 1985, a year after the band broke up.

In 1985, DWRT-FM started playing a song, deliberately misnaming it as “Fade” by Medium (sometimes billed as “Medium” by Fade), to prevent other rival stations finding the song and playing it for themselves. To make it impossible for other DJs to record the song and play it on their own station, DWRT-FM even inserted a station ID midway through the track. A year later, radio station DWXB-102 revealed the true identity of the song. “More to Lose” became an instant hit among Filipino teenagers. The song also swept the nation’s dance clubs and endless airplay on Manila FM stations throughout the mid-1980s.

SIDE A:
More To Lose (Extended Mix) 6:02

SIDE B:
You’re On My Side 3:06

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: London Records ‎– LONX 22, London Records ‎– LON X 22
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1983
Genre: Electronic
Style: New Wave, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Artwork [Silkscreen Print] – Alistair Pratley
Design [Sleeve] – Keith Breeden
Producer – Mike Thorne
Written-By – Macrae*, Gervais*

NOTES:
℗ 1983 The Decca Record Co. Ltd.
R.C.A. Music Ltd.

Find the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi